Car dealer Rolf intends to acquire a tire production plant in Russia

According to Antonov, negotiations are underway with several companies, although it has not yet been specified with whom exactly, whether they are Russian or foreign.

In the summer, Rolf’s owner Umar Kremlev, head of the International Boxing Association (IBA), announced plans to launch the production of auto parts, tires and develop his own car. According to Kremlev, it is cheaper to start the production of spare parts and other elements from scratch in its own facilities. The plant for the production of Rolf automobiles will be built at the Pushchino industrial estate in Serpukhov and, if the agreement is finalized, tire production could also be moved there.

SBS Consulting director Dmitry Babansky believes that Rolf is primarily focused on the purchase of a foreign plant, although Russian assets may also be of interest. According to Maxim Khudalov, chief strategist of the investment company Vector Capital, the car dealer can take a closer look at former factories of foreign brands that left Russia, such as the Michelin plant in the Moscow region with a capacity of 2 million tires. per year, which is now owned by Power International Tires.

Since the start of the 2022 crisis, several foreign tire manufacturers have sold their assets in Russia. The largest of them is the Ikon Tires (formerly Nokian) plant, now owned by the Tatneft structure, with a capacity of 17.5 million tires per year. The Continental and Bridgestone plants also changed owners: they were acquired by Alexey Mordashov’s Severgroup holding.

Among the foreign manufacturers remaining on the Russian market are the Japanese Yokohama with a plant in Lipetsk and the Italian Pirelli with a plant in Kirov. At the same time, 25.005% of Pirelli Tire Russia belongs to the Rostec structure (JSC NIIR), the publication notes.

According to Autobusiness Review, at the end of 2023, Rolf ranks fourth in the new car sales market in Russia (28.73 thousand cars) and first place in used car sales (102.22 thousand cars). Over the year, the company’s revenue increased by 39.84% to 323.85 billion rubles, while profits decreased 2.5 times to 5.2 billion rubles.

According to the operator of the “Honest Sign” system, CRPT, tire sales in Russia in January-August 2024 increased by 18% in units and 28.9% in monetary terms, reaching 90.2 billion rubles. Experts expect demand for passenger car tires to grow by 5-6% by the end of the year.